Office Friendly Fragrances Snapshot 22.10.16

November 7, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi APJ!

I realised something this week – that my occasional slumps in fragrance enthusiasm could be linked to changes in season. I had been wearing Borneo 1834 and Cuir Ottoman (thanks, Val!), but then haven’t felt like anything & gone fragrance free for a week. Today, something clicked back in to place and I felt like something floral & airy. I’d never really put 2:2 together, but it makes sense.

Wikipedia

So I grabbed something ultimately office-friendly, then I thought – I wonder what my colleagues are wearing today? I cheekily snuck around the office, asking the question, and found I was greeted with a big smile & loads of enthusiasm! Yay! Here’s today’s snapshot:

Office Friendly Fragrances Snapshot 22.10.16

Fragrantica

C0 (me) – Mandarine by L’Artisan Parfumeur

I’m wearing this like lolly-water today, re-spritzing with abandon.

C1 – Pink Grapefruit – The Body Shop

This is the fragrance which triggered the conversation as I could smell it walking into the work area. It was not sprayed in the office, had been wearing from home. Beautiful.

Fragrantica

C2 – CK One – Calvin Klein

I used to wear CK One, and can smell it in public at 60 paces, but this didn’t strike me so hard. It had settled a bit & had a predominant peppery note. Great stuff.

C3 – NIL

But yesterday was: Bel Respiro (EdT) – Chanel. I gave C3 this sample and this was its first wearing. Jury is out, it’s a bit intense compared to other fragrances she wears but she’ll give it a few more try’s to see if it might work.

C4 – Rose The One – D&G

This fragrance is now discontinued and it’s a fav of C4. She keeps it close by, bottle & box in her desk draw.

C5 – Oscar – Oscar de la Renta

This is C5’s signature office scent, wears it all the time. Cool!

Fragrantica

C6 – Lovely – Sara Jessica Parker

Yay! SJP getting some air time. This made me happy.

C7 – NIL

Nil today, but I know Trèsor by Lancôme is a fav of hers, a mini is close at hand. I had sent her an article on Isabella Rossellini & the fragrance’s history back in June.

C8 – NIL

C8 said he used to have time to wear cologne to work, but since his son came along priorities have changed in the morning routine. Colognes come out now for special occasions only.

Fragrantica

C9 – Orchid Soleil – Tom Ford

I didn’t actually have the conversation today with C9, but I’m adding her in because we discuss perfume often. Before this she wore Black Orchid, both are fab on her but I do know when she walks into a room without me looking! Hehe.

I’m so glad I asked! Made for some fun conversations and I got to know my workmates just that little bit better. We’ve got a great crew.

What is the fragrance you reach for the most in a professional environment?

Have a fantastic start to the week.
Tina G xx

L`Heure Diaphane VIII Cartier: Les Heures de Parfum by Mathilde Laurent for Cartier 2011

October 10, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

Post by TinaG

“Alice: How long is forever?
White Rabbit: Sometimes, just one second.”
Alice in Wonderland

Hi APJ,

Life can get hectic, whether it’s as a result of factors external or internal, work, family, home life – bring too many activities together without some space between, and everything starts to get compounded. When it’s all too much, I occasionally look for the immediacy of headspace which a beautiful fragrance can bring. Often these times lie in the realms of Hermès Hermessences, but I was given two samples of Cartier’s Les Heures de Parfum by the beautiful Tara of A Bottled Rose, and I found both to be just lovely.

Cartier

The Les Heures de Parfum line of fragrances have been created by Cartier’s perfumer, Mathilde Laurent. I knew so little about Cartier overall that I did a bit of research into the Les Heures collection, and their slimline bottles affixed with roman numerals. The samples I had to hand were of I L’Heure Promise (that prefix is a roman numeral “I”), and VIII L’Heure Diaphane. I thought my sources were sketchy when I couldn’t locate a V, and found a XIII which you won’t see on any regular clockface…. The fragrances themselves felt delicious, specifically chosen and placed at a point in time with purpose and not simply running up numerically for the sake of completeness. I liked it. Here’s a glimpse of Diaphane for you.

L`Heure Diaphane VIII Cartier by Cartier 2011

L`Heure Diaphane VIII Cartier: Les Heures de Parfum by Mathilde Laurent

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Rose, peony, litchi

VIII L’Heure Diaphane spritzes on light and fresh, rose-centric underpinned with greenness. Uplifting and refreshing, its star attraction is a wonderful peony note. If you’ve never smelt peony, it is quite rose-like, but somewhat truncated from a full “rose” spectrum. There are some stronger pink-red rosy hints in here as well but seem selective. The notes for L’Heure Diaphane are peony, rose and lychee, simple and complimentary, but together create a fragrance which is profound and elegant. The overall effect is one of a shimmering fluid-like quality, not watery as such but has a subtle movement like spiders web in a breeze. I can detect a slight pepperiness which is most likely as aspect of the peony, and rose notes accentuate rather than overwhelm.

It makes me feel: languid, gentle, intelligent, cheeky, proud, caring, efficient – all the things which get pushed to one side to meet deadlines, deal with annoying people, get frustrated with news and world events – just for example. It might sound simplistic but it is clarity and breathing space, perfect for the workplace or a weekend at home. Almost totally linear and worn close to the skin it is both a diamond and silk all wrapped up together, which can either be shown off or held to the heart.

Cartier

Further reading: What Men Should Smell Like and Grain de Musc
Saks Fifth Avenue has $285/75ml
Cartier stores and large department store counters also stock it.
Surrender To Chance have samples starting at $6/0.5ml

“You say, go slow…. I fall behind. The second hand unwinds….”
Cyndi Lauper

What fragrances have you found which provide an essential grounding in your daily life?

Till next time,
Tina G xx

Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels 2016: Revisited

September 26, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 3 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hello and welcome to another fabulously fragrant week!

Back in June APJ & I gave away five decants of Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels, to help me gather some feedback on the fragrance and whether I was going nuts in smelling some of the more unusual notes that I found.

Reviews have been received back from Koyel and Patsi, thank you! Neva, I’m sorry the post missed you while you were on holidays, I’ll resend, I promise! Bridget I hope you enjoyed the fragrance/s! Greg, offer is still open if you wish to get in touch. 🙂

Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels 2016

Collection Extraordinaire

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Cacao, patchouli leaf, woodsy notes
Heart: Iris flower, Bulgarian rose
Base: Fruity notes, leather, suede

Koyel wrote:
Moonlight Patchouli starts out in-your-face boozy for a moment, then burns off to a gorgeous, sweet, very green patchouli. There is a warmth to it that might be the cacao. After half an hour, a buttery iris starts poking its head out. Unfortunately, another half hour later, the sweet, buttery side of the iris has left behind a more cardboard-y iris note that I don’t like very much.

Maybe an hour later, the green-ness of the patchouli becomes more pronounced, and the sweet butter scent comes back. It mixes with a skin scent/warm leather (suede?) to make the absolute softest leather note. The soft, buttery leather/suede sticks quite close to the skin. I’m not quite sure when the smell faded away completely, but it lasted for far less time than a workday on multiple occasions.

I don’t get salty/seaweed/chlorine at all, luckily! Dewy, perhaps, at times, particularly in the beginning. I like this scent a lot, and find it quite wearable, though not FB-worthy. The cardboard note in the middle is a bit off-putting, but mild enough to be tolerable.

Patsi wrote:
Moonlight Patchouli is reminiscent of something familiar from way back. It reminds me of a sweet wine at the beginning becoming richer and syrupy like but with the patchouli and suede/leather notes keeping the sweetness from running over and ruining everything. The Iris and patchouli are soft and beautifully blended together with a light suede note.

The patchouli is not too strong and I love its presence with a bright fresh lemonade-like citrus, accompanied by white flowers and rose. I find it very comforting, not overpowering and it dries down to a wonderful sensual, rich base.

I kept getting wafts where the perfume had gone on my hair and I thought – who is that – what is that beautiful smell – ohhh its me!!! 🙂 I find it to be long lasting – a good 7 hours. The ladies at work loved it and declared that I smelled really good! 9/10 for me – Beautiful fragrance and definitely full bottle worthy!

Flickr

Harrods has £126/75ml
Surrender To Chance has samples from $4/0.5ml

Thank you both so much for your lovely reviews! I’m glad you enjoyed the decants.

What it has shown me is that the salt/chlorinated water note is just me, that it’s something to do with my skin or the way I interpret the smell. It is a consistent note, for a while I thought it might be the chlorinated water is stronger where I live, but I think not. I’ve been wearing Moonlight Patchouli this week and that middle note is consistent.

Thanks again guys!! It’s been fun.

Has anyone else had a chance to smell Moonlight Patchouli as yet?

Have a great week everyone.

Tina G xx

Going Green? TinaG’s Quick Sniffs with Portia

September 12, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 22 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi APJ!

Last week I caught up with Portia for tea and lunch. We spent a lovely few hours bubbling away merrily with laughter and stories. Portia has an amazing fragrance collection which we dove into in search of ‘green’ scents. I was presented with a plethora of options. I thought I would share my first impressions of these with you.

There is nothing considered or nuanced here just what jumped out and hit me first. What this style of testing allows for is a snapshot of a range of perfume in a short period of time. What I can then do is go back and explore individual frags at my leisure. Fun!!

Going Green?

TinaG’s Quick Sniffs with Portia

Here’s my notes, ranked from less to more green (if that can be a thing….)

Fragrantica

Armani Prive – Vert Malachite
Where is the ‘vert’? A bit of pettigran wafts through but it’s mainly a big white floral, heavy on the jasmine and ylang ylang.

Robert Piguet – Futur
This is supposed to be enriched by ‘green’ accords, but I can’t get past the old school aldehydes in the opening. It burns off leaving jasmine & ylang ylang with some bitter orange.

Chanel – No 19
Cool green, jasmine, rose, iris, geranium. Elegant.

Fragrantica

Jacomo – Silences
Galbanum-heavy. Not a note I easily pick up in fragrances so I spend some time with my nose on the card trying to affix it in my scent memory.

Ormond Jane – Sampaguita
Watery green. Grassy, light florals, lily & rose.

Guerlain – Aqua Allegoria Pamplelune
Grapefruit green, sharp and fresh.

Fragrantica

The Different Company – Tokyo Bloom
Heavy pink pillar of florals in the middle of gentle plant greens.

Olfactive Studio – Panorama
Light green. Peppery notes, it is a study in various green shades.

Fragrantica

Niki de Saint Phalle
Cool green, but full of colourful varied florals. Fun.

Dawn Spencer Hurwitz – Giverny in Bloom
Fresh cut wet plant stem green. OMG this is exactly like being inside a florists! Amazing!

Guerlain – Aqua Allegoria Teazzurra
Dry green tea note. Simple. Gentle.

Fragrantica

1000 Flowers – Fleur No 1
I think I was coming to the end of my capacity here because I just wrote ‘green’. (I don’t think there’s 1000 flowers in there).

So, what would I go back to? I’d be interested to see how Silences developed, along with Chanel No 19. I’ve given Panorama a run through as I got a sample when it was released, and it really is layered greens.

What else should I add to my list for future sniffs on a green theme?

See ya!
Tina G xx

Schöne Linden 05 by Krigler 1905

August 8, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi APJ!

On my recent European travels I visited Krigler at the Hotel Adlon Kempinski, Berlin, located on the glorious boulevard of Unter de Linden. Unter mean ‘under’ and it is a reference to the majestic linden trees which line both sides of the road. The scent of linden flowers is reportedly deeply honeyed, and the dried flower is used as a tea. Apparently the young leaves of the linden tree and the seeds are also edible (according to the internet, so it must be true). My Berlin trip was in May, late spring, so I missed the flourish of little yellow blooms.

The sales assistant at Krigler was amazingly helpful & patient while this little desperately jet-lagged Aussie stumbled through the range. I picked up a few samples, one of which I thought was appropriate souvenir for my time in Berlin called Schöne Linden 05. (Schöne = beautiful). The suffixed digits in Krigler’s fragrance names refer to the year they were released. Schöne Linden was launched in celebration of the opening of their first store in Berlin in 1905, hence the “05”.

Schöne Linden 05 by Krigler 1905

Parfumo

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Violet Leaf, Mimosa, Lilac
Heart: Tuberose, Gardenia, Linden
Base: Vanilla, Sandalwood, Carnation

The opening of this fragrance is a beautifully balanced bouquet of spring flowers. I’m impressed by the softness of a powdery lilac which is underpinned by a green violet accord. This is struck through with a “yellow” floral note and surrounded by a fleshy gardenia and watery tuberose, the last two flowers ensuring that the fragrance has a full and lush sillage. I was lucky enough to come across loads of lilac in flower when in Germany and it is fabulous. I lingered passing every bush I encountered filling my nostrils with the sweet scent and thoroughly enjoying the blooms. So gorgeous.

Over the first 1.5 hours both the gardenia and tuberose become creamy but stay out of heavy indole territory, and I’m picking up an almond accord. ‘Lush’ is still the word which comes to mind. I feel like I’ve put on a diaphanous floral wrap that extends around me for at least a metre. Walking away from, and back into a room, the fragrance has lingered. It is warm and welcoming.

The part of this fragrance that I enjoy the most is the dry down – after 4 hours I get a thick, sticky honey note with a touch of sandalwood and a prism of green sparkling through. My skin amplifies sweetness, and I love honey as a basenote, so there are a couple of big wins for me here. The honey effect lasts for ages, I could still pick it up on my skin overnight.

Krigler has $245/50ml
Krigler sell samples US$18/2ml and do ship to Australia.

I was frustrated with the sample spray. Perhaps I got a faulty one but it leaked when spraying and I ended up with wet fingers. My tests were all mixes of sprays and dabs because of this. Lucky I liked it!

What is your favourite spring floral fragrance?

Till next time,
Tina G xx

(Ed: All photos donated by TinaG. Thanks, they’re lovely. XXXX)

Iris Palladium by Amélie Bourgeois + Arnaud Poulain for Les Eaux Primordiales 2015

July 25, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi APJ!

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to catch up with Tara from A Bottled Rose on a whirlwind perfume extravaganza in London. We had an amazing day! One store we visited was Les Senteurs which has a fabulous range of fragrances, quite a few which were unknown to me. (Sorry they don’t ship to Aus).

One of my unknowns was Les Eaux Primordiales, a French fragrance company launched in 2015. We had a quick sniff of each of the perfumes on paper, and Murray (who is one of Les Senteurs’ superbly knowledgeable sales assistants) provided me with a sample of Iris Palladium to try later.

So later is now!

Iris Palladium by Les Eaux Primordiales 2015

Iris Palladium by Amélie Bourgeois + Arnaud Poulain

Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Italian Bergamot, Carrot Seeds, Sage, Solar Jasmine, Cedar, Patchouli, Labdanum, Sandalwood, Iris, Tonka Bean, White Musk

The iris in the opening of Iris Palladium starts off doughy and thick, before morphing and bring in some metallic / chlorine / carrot notes along with a prominent dusty sweetness that softens the composition, taking off some of the metallic edge. The mix of dust/powder is not so much in the “makeup” category, but is a musk. I tend to shy away from fragrances which list ‘white musk’ as a note, for some I can’t bear at all – sorry to say that the Body Shop fragrance of the same name is one of these. However this doesn’t hit my no-go nasal zone, the musk is pleasant, soft and warm.

WikiCommons

At 4 hours I’m taken by surprise as a beautiful clean jasmine shines through. It’s really lovely and I realise that it had been humming around in the background all this time with some nutty notes adding to the blend but not overpowering.

The fragrance recedes back to skin at 6-10 hours in a yellow woody powdery waft with the lightest impression of citrus and I smell a hint of bitter ash in the dry down. It’s a pleasant combo and I enjoy the longevity that it keeps well into the evening.

Overall the two predominant notes (varying iris / dusty musk) are complimentary, and round each other out. For people (like myself) who revel in a bold metallic iris it may feel like a pillow has been put over it and muffled the composition. It’s very yin/yang, notes curling around each other & balancing out. But there’s a few surprises in there which keeps it interesting. Worth a trial if you have the chance.

Flickr

Further reading: Black Narcissus
Les Eaux Primordials has an outlet page

Have you had any new fragrance lines cross your radar lately?

xx Tina G

Still Life in Rio by Dora Baghriche for Olfactive Studio 2016

July 11, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 12 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi there APJ!

Friday 5 August 2016 marks the beginning of the XXXI Olympiad, with the start of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Summer Olympics being held in a city which is renowned for its celebrations and colourful festivals, wide open beaches, and friendly people. We have quite a large Brazilian contingent here in Sydney and whenever our paths cross I feel like I’ve been swept up into one large loud colourful party – It’s not optional! You must relax and have fun! Well, OK then…. 🙂

Still Life in Rio by Olfactive Studio 2016

Still Life in Rio by Dora Baghriche

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Yuzu, ginger, lemon, mint, mandarin orange
Heart: Pepper, black pepper, pink pepper, coconut milk
Base: Rum, copaiba balm, leather

On either side of the party you have the warm relaxed recovery times, lazy days by the beach enjoying the long sunsets, drinks and food. I feel that this is where Still Life in Rio fits in. As a fragrance, it is bright and invigorating. It opens with a burst of lemon pith and juice that is tart at first then warms with ginger and mandarin, with a touch of mint and a general milkiness (is that coconut?) behind it all. It’s a fragrance you want to wear on sun kissed and salty skin, the lemon taking centre stage for the first few hours. The ginger gets stronger by way of a ‘taste’ sensation on the back of my tongue, however I’m not sure that I pick up the peppers which are listed in the notes for this fragrance – the ginger is predominant as a spice.

After about 4 hours I find that I’m really enjoying the mandarin, and realise that the whole effect of the fragrance is like a mandarin caprioska, juicy and refreshing. I don’t find there’s much development in the fragrance after this but it has a good longevity of at least 10 hours, and I’ve noticed the fragrance wafting around me as I’ve been going about my day so it has a decent sillage. A great summer scent, light and easy wearing. You might head toward this if you enjoy the freshness of a cologne but enjoy the sophistication & longevity of a well-crafted perfume.

Olfactive Studio

I remember the Sydney Olympics back in 2000, it was such a fabulous time! A relaxed happy party atmosphere, the trains actually ran to their timetables (!!!), and you could stop and chat to anyone on the street with a smile and a laugh. Really great times. We had a ball. And although the world is a different place now to then I sincerely wish the best of everything that the Olympics holds for Rio.

Further reading: Scented Hound and Colognoisseur
First In Fragrance has €90/50ml + Samples
Libertine Parfumerie will have it in stock soon for the Aussies.

What fragrances do you wear in summer to beat the heat?

Till next time, Tina G. xx

Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels 2016

June 27, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 47 Comments

Post by TinaG

Standing at the Van Cleef & Arpels counter at Heathrow Terminal 3, I did something that every seasoned perfumer swears off doing. I bought a full bottle based on a sniff from a sprayed card, in the shop. But I was so taken by the strong buttery iris notes that I thought I was on a sure thing.

But now after coming home, the fragrance seems to be elusive and jumping around on me a bit. I’m having trouble working out whether it’s the fragrance, or if my nose has been tortured from the aircon on a long haul flight. I’ve been testing and testing this week but it’s no clearer…. So I’m looking for a bit of help.

Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels 2016

Collection Extraordinaire

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Cacao, patchouli leaf, woodsy notes
Heart: Iris flower, Bulgarian rose
Base: Fruity notes, leather, suede

The fragrance is Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels, their newest in their Collection Extraordinaire. My opening impression of this is of a coca-induced buttery floral iris with a clean patchouli lightly placed underneath. Loving the iris! Loving the butteriness! The iris burns off over the first half hour and the fresh green patchouli steps up with a dry white wood. Reviews of Moonlight Patchouli so far seem to mimic the press release, hinting at light & dark aspects of the fragrance – similar to a full moon behind forest trees. For me it is warm vs cool – the iris & patchouli are cool, woods and coca/cacao being warm. At first this felt quite linear and seemed to disappear at 1/2 hour, but then there are flickers of resurgence of the iris and patch.

It’s at this point I wonder if I’m getting fatigued as the patch takes on a different tone, one which I can only describe as deep green and salty, firstly reminding me of seaweed then perhaps salt-chlorination. There’s a personal skin note in there as well, and it’s consistent – I’ve found it three times on different days. Interesting.

Pixabay

At around 4 hours the whole composition sweetens, I get musk lollies and lemon blossom & some fruitiness. The musk is both prominent and subtle – sounds contradictory, right? Not really – it’s like panning for gold. At first the sand looks homogeneous but give it a few swirls and it starts to separate, quartz sand, black sand, and teeny gold flakes saying ‘here I am’. The musk isn’t in the notes but with ‘skin-scents’ and sweet lolly I’m pretty sure there’s at least two.

At 8 hours an equally subtle leather appears, so gentle that I try to work out whether it’s the fragrance or if I’m getting scent transfer from my handbag. The sweetness has dissipated by this time so what we’re left with is a soft warm suede which is really lovely & snuggly.

Harrods has £126/75ml

Below there is a great way you can try & reply about Moonlight Patchouli
Can you help me work this fragrance out? Overall I think it’s beautiful and wearable, but I’m interested in your thoughts.

I’m giving away 5x 2ml decants of Moonlight Patchouli below, with a request for some feedback please!

Looking forward to it! Thanks!
Tina G xx

Moonlight Patchouli GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 5 winners who will receive:
1 x 2ml decant Moonlight Patchouli by VC&A
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

Open to everyone worldwide who follows AustralianPerfumeJunkies via eMail, WordPress, Bloglovin or RSS. Please leave how you follow in the comments to be eligible. I must be able to check that you follow so if you have an email address on your gravatar that’s different to your follow address then please email me so I know. Yes, you can start following to enter, in fact it’s encouraged.

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell us you’ll be involved in the fun if you win

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Friday 1 July at 9pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winner will be chosen by random.org
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.

THEN IF YOU WIN

*Winners will be asked to provide a mailing address to me on the email address apjfeedback (at) gmail (dot) com.
* Within 2 weeks of receiving your decant, please write to the email address apjfeedback (as above) providing a one-paragraph review of your experience testing the frag.
* Let me know your screen-name as I will use your feedback in a future article.

Amsterdam Fragrance Adventures: TinaG’s 2016 Europe Tour

June 13, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 13 Comments

Post by TinaG

The Netherlands is home base to a number of fragrance houses – Mona Di Orio, Puredistance, Hiram Green and Nasomatto to name a few. When visiting in May this year I mentioned this to my cousin Kylie, who was very interested in finding out more – so we decided to spend a day in Amsterdam hunting for Dutch perfume. What a great way for me to introduce her to the rabbit hole that is the perfume world!

Amsterdam Fragrance Adventures

TinaG’s 2016 Europe Tour

World Atlas Book

Annindryia Perfume Lounge

Our first stop also became our longest as I was totally enthralled and excited. We had dropped in to Annindryia Perfume Lounge and I had walked in to a small slice of absolute heaven. They stock a fabulous selection of Dutch and international fragrances. We were warmly greeted and shown around the display room. Kylie took to the whole experience and I’m happy to say she was instantly hooked. We sniffed and chatted for a few hours. Have a look at Annindryia Perfume Lounge site for an idea of their range. Yes they ship to Australia and yes the do samples.

Le Bienaimé by Erik Zwaga

This brand utilises the concept of up-cycling to create new fragrances from existing brands. The bottles would be familiar to most perfumistas – I spotted repurposed Chanel and Etro bottles, tied up with multi-house-branded ribbons. The names of the fragrances hint at their primary constituents: CHA-CHA-CHA-CHANEL, R-I-O-D (Dior spelt backwards), HERMEJESY. I picked up a sample of S.T.I.N.K (how could I not?) that contains Classic Opoponax, Èdition Rare – Petrolium, Floriental, Musk Tonkin, Obsessive Oudh and Song for a Queen.

Eau d’Amsterdam

Eau d’Amsterdam is a fragrant ode to the thousands of elm trees which line the city’s streets and canals. I had noted the springtime ‘snow’ without realising they were elm seeds, which behave like petals caught in the wind as they scatter themselves across the city. It is described as: Sunny green woody
It’s definitely all that, it has the dry astringency of a freshly snapped twig – really light and perfect for a warm spring day.

People of the Labyrinths

After leaving Annindryia Perfume Lounge I visited the store of fashion house People of the Labyrinths. Fabulous clothing, exquisite materials… I thoroughly enjoyed looking around & chatting to the sales assistants. They have two fragrances – A.Maze and Luctor Et Emergo. I tried both on skin and they generously gave me a sample of A.Maze.

Skins Cosmetics

Our last stop of the day was a shop & beautician Skins Cosmetics, located in the Het Conservatorium Hotel. They had a wonderful range of fragrances however most of the brands stocked I do have access to in Australia – Hermès, Frederic Malle, Byredo, By Killian, Le Labo. There were a few fragrances that I tried – the Clean range, and some of the Hermès range such as Eau de rhubarb écarlate, and Eau d’orange vert which I hadn’t tried before.

I had a fantastic day introducing Kylie to the fragrance world and checking out some special places & perfumes in Amsterdam.

Do you have a favourite Dutch fragrance house?

Tina G

Perfumer H – Lyn Harris: TinaG In Europe Photo Essay

May 28, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 5 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi APJ!

I was treated to a fabulous day out in London during my travels, hosted by Tara from A Bottled Rose. Tara has written up our adventures in more detail on her blog. One of the exciting discoveries of the day was a visit to the Perfumer H lab & shop in Crawford Street, London.

Perfumer H – Lyn Harris

‘Making Air Visible’

Perfumer H was started by Liz Harris (of Miller Harris) roughly 8 months ago. The shop contains an extensive lab out the back which is both Lyn Harris’s workshop, and a ingredient display. We were greeted by Caroline who kindly ran us through the concepts of the fragrance company.

Perfumer H releases new fragrances seasonally – their first being Winter 2015 and the current range for Summer 2016. Past seasonal fragrances are ‘archived’ but not discontinued, which means they continue to be accessible. Two of the Winter 2015 releases were rolled-over to Summer 2016 – Leather and Cologne, which join Atlas, Musk and Rain Cloud for this season’s suite of five. I wish that I wrote down the archived Winter fragrances – I do know one was Velvet. There were three that had been shelved.

There are a selection of five home fragrances which are available as candles – Orange Blossom, Dandelion, Leaf, Ivy and Smoke. The perfume bottles and candle holders are each hand-made, heavy and lush. You can choose to purchase the fragrances in 100ml functional screw-cap bottles, which I did for ease of travelling.

Perfumer H has a range of ‘laboratory editions’ which are a fun way to purchase some of Liz Harris’s creative work. Names like Ink, Vetiver, Rose & Smoke line the shelves. Each fragrance in the whole range is also given a unique identifier, and if you wish, you can purchase that perfume outright – including choosing it’s name, having it registered in Grasse, and it is then taken out of general circulation – so it is yours and yours alone. You can buy single bottles without claiming rights though – just careful if you fall in love, it may just disappear one day!

I tried four fragrances on skin – Velvet, Musk, Atlas and Leather as I was keen to pick up a bottle, but wow…. What a difficult decision! I would have been happy to walk away with any of them, but I decided on Musk.

Musk – no. g116 3995
Notes: Bergamot (Italy), Mandarin, Petitgrain (Paraguay), Iris absolute (China), Heliotrope, Cedarwood (Virginia), Benjoin (Siam), Vanilla absolute, White Musk.

On opening I get a floral Iris and fluffy musk along with a subtle plant-stem note in the background. After an hour this changes to an iris/cedar combination. It is sexy, gentle and very wearable. Sticky vanilla notes waft in and out. I find the citruses after 8 hours in a sheer veneer of smoke & juice that makes me wish I sprayed more skin. Interestingly the iris has a great staying power and it remains throughout (+12 hours). It is a gorgeous fragrance and I’m extremely glad I picked it up. I’m half tempted to go back & get the Leather as well, time & funds permitting.

Perfumer H is a great concept which has been actualised with wonderful fragrances and beautiful glass bottles. They do ship to Australia but you will be paying a premium for hazardous goods ~£70.

What do you think, APJ? Sound like a fun venture to you?

Tina G xx